Please Don't Let Go
by TooManyBooks7
Summary: I never though my life would get this weird. And yet it did. My life went from normal to absolutely insane in a matter of a few weeks. Somehow all the Avengers join in, making my world a beautiful, amazing, insane disaster. Life is a beautiful thing, and we all are just trying to navigate it. (In which I'm really bad a summaries sorry)
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: All publicly** **recognizable characters, setting, etc are property of their respective owners. The original characters, ideas and plot belong to the author. The author is in no way associated with the original creator an no copyright infringement is intended.**

 **Chapter 1**

I glanced at the clock on my office wall. I had had a late night at work, trying to finish up the project I was working on. The clock read 6:20, which meant it was going to be dark in a few minutes. I sighed and turned off my computer, tucked my laptop in my bag and grabbed my coat from off the back of my chair. I pulled the dark gray peacoat on and did up the large black buttons. I slung my pale gray bag over my shoulder and headed out of the office building.

The light had almost completely faded away by the time I was outside. I shivered at the slight chill in the air and headed underground.

After about ten minutes on the tube, I got off on the Piccadilly Circus station. It was pretty much completely dark by the time I got off the tube, and I shivered, and not completely because of the cold. I could've gotten off on a station closer to home, but I needed to run into Waterstones to pick up a book, so I decided to just brave the ten minute walk back to my flat.

It didn't take long to find the book I needed (just the newest book in one of my favorite series) and I only spent about fifteen minutes browsing before figuring I was hungry and really needed to get home. I stepped out of the cozy bookstore and into the cold night.

After about five minutes of walking, I began to feel distinctly uncomfortable. I never felt particularly safe walking home alone, especially when it was dark, but I could feel a slightly irrational fear creeping into my head. Nevertheless, I continued walking, albeit much more on edge and jumpy than before. And rightly so, for as I walked passed an alleyway, two hands jutted out and roughly jerked me into the alley.

I tried to scream, but a hand covered my mouth and an oily voice spoke up. "We'll be having none of that, sweetheart. You're just going to be quiet and do as I say. Okay?"

I didn't respond, but almost screamed again as he pulled me roughly and pushed a knife against my throat. "Let's try that again. You'll be quiet and you'll do what I say. Okay?" I nodded, terrified, trying to ignore the pain from the dull blade pressed against my throat. The man opened his mouth and I could smell beer on his breath. That, combined with the lingering smell of cigarette smoke made me want to throw up. But before he could say anything, I heard another voice.

"Well, well, well, what do we have here?" I was relieved for the distraction, but fear kicked in, wondering who the second person was. He was clearly a man from the sound of his voice, and I couldn't help but think he sounded familiar.

I heard the man walking towards us, and my captor released me quickly. I sagged against a nearby wall and placed my hand on my neck. It came away with blood on it. I slumped against the wall and watched the scene unfolding in front of me. The man who had clearly grabbed me was a slim, shady guy with dirty grayish-brown hair. He was really just gross and the urge to take a shower was extremely strong now. The other man was tall and bulky, with neatly trimmed blond hair and glasses. I watched as the blonde man swung a punch, catching the other man completely off guard. He stumbled backwards and braced himself against a wall. He spat, and I could see that it was mostly blood. I shrunk to the ground and buried my face in my hands, but it wasn't long until I heard a voice.

"Hey." I looked up to see the blond man standing in front of me. He offered me a hand and I took it. I had a better view of him as he pulled me up, and I couldn't help but think I knew him from somewhere. After staring at him for a few more moments, it struck me.

"Holy crap." I stumbled back a bit, and suddenly the man looked uncomfortable. "You're Captain America."

He held up his hands. "Yes, yes, that's true. But um, do me a favor and just call me Steve." He suddenly squinted at me. "Wait a second, are you Stephanie Hayes?"

I stumbled backwards before bracing myself against the wall. "How do you know my name?"

He furrowed his brow before shaking his head. "It's a long story. But you need to go home."

I frowned. "What about you? Are you just going to leave me?"

He shook his head. "No, I need to come with you. There's something going on…" He shook his head again. "Forget that. Lead on."

I gave him an incredulous look, but turned around regardless to head home. I was aware of Steve's presence behind me, and found it was quite comforting.

After about five minutes, I was at my door. I hadn't noticed how much I was shaking, and I didn't think it was because of the cold. I fumbled with the key before finally getting it in the knob and unlocking my door. I felt better once I had stepped inside, but the look Steve gave me told me my comfort wasn't going to last.

I set my bag down on my couch and and looked at Steve. He seemed to be a bit out of it, but jolted back to reality when I cleared my throat.

"Oh sorry. Okay, so…" He stopped talking and vigorously rubbed his temples. "This sounds absolutely insane, but I need you to pack a bag and come with me."

I opened my mouth to ask one of the thousands of questions fluttering through my mind, but Steve put his hand up, and my mouth snapped shut. Steve sighed and opened his mouth to speak again.

"I know you're confused and heck, I don't blame you. I feel pretty safe saying this is the weirdest thing that has ever happened to you, but I need something truly valuable from you." His face and voice took on a serious tone, and he looked to me. "I'm asking for your trust. I need you to put your trust in me."

I gulped and stared at him. I felt scared and uncertain, but at the same time, I felt a wave of confidence washing over me. I stood a little taller and looked in his eyes. "Okay, what do I need to do?"

Steve looked quite relieved at my agreement to come along and nodded. "Okay, I need you to go to you room and pack a bag with some stuff. I hate to worry you, and I really don't have the time to explain why, but you probably won't be back any time soon. Or ever." His eyes scanned me, taking in my work clothes I was still dressed in. "You may want to change into something a bit more… convenient."

I gave him a half smile and headed back to my room. I grabbed a pair of joggers, hoodie and shirt and changed out of my work clothes. I then grabbed my teal backpack from my closet and packed it with some clothes, my laptop, phone charger and, thinking back to what Steve said, a few personal photos and personal things. My hands trembled slightly as I zipped up the bag.

Not fifteen minutes later, I was back in my living room. When Steve heard me coming, he jumped up off the couch arm where he had been perched and offered me a small smile. I returned the gesture. Just as he opened his mouth to speak, a loud bang sounded at my door. Steve's head whipped to the door, and he quietly cursed under his breath.

"What is it?" I asked, surprised at Steve, and in shock.

Steve sighed and was quite for a moment, as if debating how much to tell me. Finally, sighed.

"Technically, it's a _who_. Hydra."

The look of shock and fear must have been pretty blatant on my face, because his features softened and he spoke to me in a hushed tone,

"We gotta be quiet," He whispered. "We don't want to hear. Do you have a fire escape?"

I took a moment to soak all of this in and nodded. "It's in my room."

"Okay, great." He replied. He gestured for me to head to my room, so I did. Once I was in, I lifted the window.

"Do you need me to get away?" I asked.

"Yeah, just get down. I'll be right behind you."

A loud bang sounded and I winced. A look of concern molded Steve's features before he gestured for me to go.

"Hurry! I'll stall them."

I didn't need to be told twice as I hopped out onto the fire escape into the brisk October evening. I hurried down the fire escape stairs, trying not to focus on the commotion coming from my bedroom. My feet hit solid ground and I darted into a small alleyway where I would have a good view of the fire escape. The few minutes I stood there felt like the longest ones in the world, with adrenaline pumping through my veins.

Suddenly, I heard a crash, distinctly like glass breaking. I watched as a curled figure figure fell and landed on the pavement with a loud, metallic bang sounding. I recoiled as I noticed who it was. I dashed to the super solider who was making slow movements.

"Steve?" I said nervously. He groaned, and I took that as I good sign. At least he was conscious. He looked up at me, and I offered him my hand. I stood up agonizingly slow and sagged against the wall. I crossed my arms and stared at him.

"You know, that was a really stupid idea."

Steve looked a bit sheepish at my reprimand and rubbed his head. "You're probably right."

I rolled my eyes. "Yeah. Can you at least walk though?"

Steve nodded. "I can probably run, but I think it'll be kinda slow."

"Where's the getaway?" I asked.

"Grosvenor Square."

I let out a sigh of relief. That wasn't too far to go, and we could avoid the main roads pretty easily.

"Well then," I said, putting on what I hoped was a convincing smile. "Let's get going."

It only took about five minutes to get to the park. I could see the black quinjet from where I stood, but we would have to cross Grosvenor Square Street so we could get to the jet. All in all, it was probably only about 50 meters to the jet, but Steve was injured and it was all open. I sighed and turned to Steve.

"We're gonna have to make a break for it."

Steve nodded. "It'll be okay. We'll make it."

I took a deep breath and ran.

The first bit wasn't too bad, but then I heard commotion behind me, most likely Hydra. Then the bullets came. They were firing on us. The adrenaline pumping through my veins gave me a newfound energy, but when I was about a yard away, I heard a grunt of pain. I didn't dare look behind me, but just focused on the open door of the quinjet. I ran in, barely missing the man standing in the door and bracing myself against the wall to catch my breath. Steve rolled in a moment later, and the door began to close. I sagged against the wall and sighed.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Thank you for reading my story! I wasn't really planning on publishing it until my friend read it and was so impressed she persuaded me to publish it. So here's the second chapter! Enjoy!**

 **Updated 4/28- Hey! I've made just a few simple changes which I really needed to make for the sake of the story later on. I just changed a few things, mostly putting Friday in instead of Jarvis.**

 **Chapter 2**

I stood up and set my bag on the floor, just hoping my laptop wasn't broken. I shut my eyes and massaged the area between my eyes. A moment later, I heard a low groan from the floor in front of the door. My eyes darted up as I remembered there was another person on the jet. The man was tall and muscular with blue eyes and light brown hair. Again, I had that faint feeling of recognition before the realization hit me.

"Hawkeye. You're Hawkeye."

He smirked at me and nodded. "Clint Barton," he said, offering his hand for a shake.

"Stephanie Hayes," I said, shaking his hand.

Steve groaned again and I looked down at him, almost immediately wishing I hadn't. His jacket and t-shirt were torn and in a particularly bad spot… was that a…

I blanched. "Is tha-a-at a bu-u-ll-et?" I asked, cursing how scared my voice sounded.

Clint cursed quietly under his breath. "You sure know how to get yourself into trouble, Cap." Clint looked to me and must have seen my fear and distraughtness because his features softened a bit.

"Hey, you don't have to stay in here. Go sit in the co-pilot's seat next to Nat."

I nodded my thanks and headed over to the seat. I curled up in the seat and looked at the woman in the pilot's seat. Her dark red hair was short and slightly curled at the ends, and she had really pretty greenish-gray eyes that constantly flickered back and forth from the numerous controls. After a few moments, she spoke up without even allowing her eyes to leave the panel.

"Are you boys ready to fly?"

Clint gave her the okay, she flipped a few more switches and we began to move. I took my phone out of my pocket and began to play a game, hoping it would calm my nerves. I suppose it kind of worked, and about ten minutes into our flight, the woman turned to me.

"So you're Stephanie Hayes."

I looked for any hint of judgment in her expression and tone, but she just seemed curious, so I nodded.

"And you're the Black Widow."

She gave me a small smile. "Yes, that's true. But, just call me Natasha."

I looked back to her. "Can I ask you a question?"

Her smile disappeared and she sighed. "I know what you're going to ask, and the thing is, we don't know. We don't why you're here, other than that we got tipped off that Hydra wanted you. We knew that we couldn't let them get what they want, so that's why we came to you. As for why Hydra wants you, I hate to admit it, but we just don't know."

I gulped as I took in this information. Natasha looked to me, nothing but cool, measured calculation on her face. I gave her a small smile.

"I honestly have no clue what to think. This is a lot to take in, and it's all happened so fast. I'm really just quite confused."

Natasha didn't say anything, but the look she gave me said it all. Man, you don't know anything yet.

The rest of the ride was pretty quiet. I didn't really have anything to talk to Natasha about, but the silence wasn't really that awkward. In fact, it was quite comfortable and companionable. I enjoyed the aerial view of England, but most of the ride was crossing the ocean, so there wasn't much to look at. But now, I could see the lights of New York City. We flew silently over the city until we were over the landing pad at the Avengers Tower. I was familiar with the building, previously one of Tony Stark's buildings, but after the invasion of New York it became the headquarters for Earth's Mightiest Heroes. I couldn't believe I was actually about to go inside.

Once Natasha landed the quinjet, I looked to her for instructions. She gave me a slightly queer look and then stood up. I followed suit, stretching out for the first time in quite a few hours. Clint helped Steve hobble off the jet, and Natasha turned to me.

"So, you're going to be staying here, obviously. It's the safest place for you to be while we figure out what's going on. Steve offered the spare bedroom on his floor to you, so I that's where I'm going to be taking you."

I nodded to show I was following her. I couldn't help but think that some of the things she said could have sounded really mean, but they were soft enough that they didn't. I pushed my various thoughts away and followed Natasha inside.

I noticed the truth in Natasha's words (this is the safest place for you to be) within a few seconds out of the jet. As soon as I stepped out, two agents grabbed me, roughly patted me down and scanned me. They nodded curtly at Natasha and gestured for us to enter in through the doors, except for the fact that one of the agents had to scan his hand and input a code to open the doors. After an almost five minute process, we were ushered in.

"Good evening, Agent Romanoff."

I jumped at the voice, but Natasha just gave me a knowing smile.

"Oh, sorry about that. Stephanie, meet Friday. She's the AI Tony Stark invented to run the tower and really everything else after Jarvis was uploaded into Vision."

"Agent Romanoff speaks the truth, though I am always happy to help. Welcome to Avengers Tower, Miss Hayes"

I turned to Natasha. "How does she know my name?"

"You were scanned the moment you came in. Nothing serious, but just enough to allow Friday to recognize you."

Natasha then headed to the elevator. I followed, and it was by far the nicest elevator I had ever been it. We swiftly traveled down, and after a few moments, the elevator stopped and the doors opened with a soft ding. We stepped out of the elevator and were in a tiny hallway with a door at the other end. I followed Natasha inside and was thoroughly shocked as I stepped in.

The main room was amazing. There was a large white couch and a few armchairs situated in front of a low coffee table. A huge TV was placed on the wall over a fireplace. The rest of the wall the TV was on was taken up by huge floor-to-ceiling windows, currently covered with blinds. Everything had a very comfy, lived-in feel about it, and a small smile crept onto my lips.

I was jerked out of my admiring with Natasha clearing her throat.

"Do you want to see your room?"

I smiled sheepishly and followed her into another room, which was just as breathtaking as the last. A huge bed, probably a queen, was built into the back wall, surrounded by shelves. There was a dresser, desk, bookshelf, vanity and armchair, all cream with gold trim to match the room. The walls were a beautiful bright blue, with a golden trim around the top. The floor was cream colored and very plush. I turned to Natasha in shock. She just shrugged and smirked, leaving me staring at her incredulously.

"So, bathroom's there," she said, pointing to a door. "And that's a closet," she said, pointing to a second door. "And, something you might like to know is how complicated Stark likes to make things." She grabbed a remote off the shelf by the bed and pressed a button. A TV came down, right in the perfect place for watching in bed. "If you want it to go away, just press the button again."

I nodded my understanding, and Natasha gave me a small smile.

"I'm going to go check on Steve. I'll come back up and let you know how he is in a bit. In the meantime, you may want to unpack and shower. Just, make yourself comfortable. You'll be here a while."

I gulped and nodded. Natasha turned to leave, but I spoke.

"Natasha?"

"Yeah?"

"Thanks."

She turned back to me and smiled. "Don't mention it. You need one good friend here, and I've got your back."

About 20 minutes later, I was in my pajamas, perched on the edge of my bed. After the best shower I had ever taken, I was feeling a good deal better. I heard the door open and was unsurprised to see Natasha come in.

"How's he doing?" I asked

"Cap? He's really not that bad. Due to his accelerated healing, if he spends tonight and half of the day tomorrow on bedrest, he should be fine."

I smiled. "That's good. Thanks for letting me know."

Natasha smiled in return. "No problem. If you need me, Friday will know where to find me."

I gave Natasha my thanks and she left. The events of the day caught up with me, and I fell asleep with minimal effort.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Hey y'all! Sorry to keep you waiting with this story, but I've just kept forgetting to update. But here it is!**

 **(So I have two more chapters currently written, I just keep forgetting to publish them! Sorry!)**

 **Updated 4/28- Hey, I made a few other changes, like changing Jarvis to Friday and adding in Vision, just a bit. Again, this is for the sake of the story, so sorry if it causes any cofusion.**

 **Chapter 3**

I woke up, and in my half sleep delirium, it took me a moment to remember where I was. As I looked around the room I was in, I pinched myself to make sure I wasn't dreaming. I wasn't. Everything began to come back to me, and I winced internally as I thought it all. Regardless, I got out of bed and headed for the kitchen.

"Good morning, Miss. Hayes." The AI's voice made me jump before I recalled her existence.

"Good morning Friday. What time is it?"  
"It is 10:26 in the morning, Miss Hayes."

I froze. No wonder I felt so refreshed. I hadn't actually slept that long in ages. But it wasn't like I could do anything, so I just continued on my way to the kitchen.

The kitchen wasn't huge, but it was really nice and quite cute. I rooted through the cupboards and fridge before deciding on peanut butter toast for my late breakfast.

As I waited for the bread to toast, I was struck with another thought.

"Friday?"

"Yes?"

"What's the wifi password?"

"I'm afraid I can't answer that question. You'll have to go see Mr. Stark for that."

I ate my toast quickly and got dressed in leggings and a hoodie. I didn't know what Stark's workshop would be like, so I went ahead and put on my Converse. I went ahead and grabbed my computer as well as my phone, just so that both could be connected. Friday had gone ahead and notified Stark of my intended visit. I took a breath and prepared myself for an encounter with a fourth Avenger in the past 24 hours.

Friday had the elevator move once I was inside, and it swiftly took me down. I was quite certain that Stark's workshop was underground, and judging by the amount of time it took me to travel, I figured I was right. The soft ding from the elevator doors noted me the short trip was done, and I stepped out into a long hallway.

One wall of the hallway was all glass, and I could see through enough to tell it was Stark's workshop and it was huge. There were glass doors with some sort of scanner next to it, although, the more I thought about it, the more I doubted the walls and door were glass.

I stood, waiting to be noticed. After a good few minutes, Stark turned around and, upon noticing me, got up from the bench he was sitting on and walked over to the doors I was waiting at. He input a code into a pad on his side of the doors and they slid open with a quiet hiss. Stark held out his arms and broke into a wide grin.

"Welcome to Tony's funhouse! Please, call me Tony, I won't be dealing with any of that Mr. Stark bullcrap. And you must be the infamous Stephanie Hayes. What can I do for you?"

I shook my head, trying desperately to take in this madman. "Oh, I just want the wifi password." I held out my phone to him, rather shocked when he snatched it out of my hand.

"Well, well, well, what do we have here? An iPhone… 5S? And a MacBook? Someone seems a bit partial to Apple, oh well." He took my computer from me and set it with my phone on a small table. "What's your favorite color?"

I stared at him in shock before shaking my head at the absurdness of his question. "Blue. Like, a bright sky blue specifically."

He nodded. "Okay, that'll do. So do me a favor and come back in an hour."

"What about my stuff?" I asked.

"Don't worry. An hour won't kill you."

I shot him a sidelong glance and headed back to my room.

About an hour later, I found myself heading back down to Tony's workshop. I really had no clue what to expect, but it definitely wasn't what happened.

"Tony, I can't accept these." I stated. I tried to hand the phone and computer back to him, back he shook his head and held up his hands.

"I don't like being handed things. You already accepted them when you took them from me. The computer is my newest design for a two-in-one tablet computer and the phone is one of the newer models of the StarkPhone. You'll find all the Avengers' numbers in there, and yours has been put in theirs automatically. Also, I was able to transfer your game data over, all though it was a pain, though that Best Fiends progress was too good to delete. You're welcome."

I stared at the arrogant genius billionaire playboy philanthropist standing in front of me. I shook my head in disbelief.

"I honestly don't know what to say, other than thank you. Wow."

Tony flashed a Cheshire Cat grin. "Don't mention it. Really don't. It'd ruin my reputation."

I shook my head and left the workshop. Just as I came out, the elevator doors opened to reveal a tall woman with light copper colored hair pulled into a neat bun. She wore a professional looking business suit with heels. She stepped out of the elevator and walked over to me.

"Hi! I'm Pepper. Pepper Potts. I don't really recognize you. Who are you?

She held her hand out for a shake, and I took it graciously. "I'm Stephanie Hayes, and wow, you're the CEO of Stark Industries."

She smiled. "Yes, that I am. And you're Stephanie. Well, it's nice to meet you. What are you doing down here?"

"I came to get the wifi password over an hour ago and Stark seemed adamant on making sure Apple technology didn't stay in here longer than it needed to." I held up the phone and computer tablet to prove my point.

Pepper rolled her eyes. "Well, just consider it a compliment and a welcome present."

I laughed. "That I will. It was nice to meet you."

"Aw, you too. Just know I'm here if you ever need someone to talk to."

I smiled and stepped into the elevator. "Noted and thank you."

I spent the next couple hours fiddling with my new computer and phone. The phone is amazing and, yes, connected to the internet. It's in a pretty blue case and does still have all my data from my games. And I had to admit, it did run a lot smoother and just seem a lot better than my old iPhone. The computer-tablet was also really cool, with a blue keyboard and matching blue stylus. It was so small and sleek and did seem a good deal better than my Mac. After a good deal of messing about, I stood up to go make some dinner. I had eaten breakfast so late that I hadn't had lunch, so now it was half past five and I was starving.

I got up and went to the kitchen. I had Friday put on the Hamilton soundtrack as I put a pot of water on the stove to boil. I also took some chicken out of the fridge and prepared it to be cooked. Soon, the kitchen was full of delicious aromas of my cooking.

Just as I was taking my garlic bread out of the oven, someone spoke up, almost causing me to drop my bread.

"Well, you've just made yourself right at home, haven't you?" I turned to see Steve leaning against the doorframe with a comfortable grin on his face.

I shrugged. "I was hungry. Plus, I just really enjoy cooking."

Steve laughed. "Shall we eat then?"

I grinned and turned to get some plates and dish out the food. A few moments later we were sitting at the table. I watched as Steve took a bite and chewed, taking time to really taste the food.

"Mmm. Where did you learn to cook like this?" He said finally.

"My mom." I said, without thinking.

Steve must have noticed my abrupt shift in mood, because he set his fork down and looked at me. His expression seemed so open and willing to listen that I made the split-second decision to trust him.

"My parents are dead. I grew up in North Carolina, where I lived my entire life. I went to college and after I graduated, decided to go abroad with some of my mates from my college dorm. I spent a year and a half traveling across Europe and then came home. I went ahead and got a job. But then, not even six months later, my parents got into a fatal car accident. Being their only child, I inherited all their money, so I quit my job and moved to London. I pretty much cut off all my ties with people in North Carolina. This is my first time back in over two years."

I looked up at Steve and saw a variety of emotions across his face; shock, surprise, pity, and sorrow. I felt a bit embarrassed I had told all of this to a near stranger, but for some reason or another, I trusted him.

Steve cleared his throat. "I have to admit, I have no clue what to say to that. Anything I could say you've probably heard and don't want to hear any of it. But… I am glad you told me. It does help to get things like that out." He gave me an encouraging smile and I offered a small one in return.

After we finished eating, Steve and I decided to watch Zootopia. Yes, it is technically a kids movie, but we thought it would be a nice feel-good movie to watch. And boy, was it a good film. As it finished, I stood and gave Steve a smile before going to my room. And once again, as I curled up under the covers in what was probably the most comfortable bed I had ever slept in, sleep found me easily.

 **A/N: So, what'd you think? As you can probably tell, I like putting personal touches in my stories, like my obsession with Best Fiends and Hamilton. And Zootopia is actually a really good movie (it was also the only one I had on my mind at the time).**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Woah, this one is a longer one. Sorry, sorry, SORRY it's been so long. I'm terrible at this. If you seem confused by anything that comes up, maybe go back and read the last two chapters. I made some really small changes that will be necessary to the story later, sooo... enjoy!**

 **Chapter 4**

The next week passed in a similar manner, with me spending a lot of the day sitting around watching TV or baking cookies or muffins. Steve was in and out, often doing Avengers things or whatever, but he was there nearly every evening. We would always eat dinner and watch a movie together on the evenings when Steve wasn't busy. I settled into it pretty easily, and as Steve got used to having a roommate, I got used to having a friend.

One morning, about a week and a half after I had come to the the Avengers tower, I woke up and went into the main room, surprised to see Natasha dressed and sitting on the couch. She jumped up when she saw me.

"Good morning, darling. Sorry to spring this on you, but I figured we'd go shopping today since your wardrobe is pretty… depleted. I just made breakfast, go ahead and eat and then you can get dressed."

I followed Natasha's instructions, first eating a plate of pancakes, bacon and eggs and then getting dressed in jeans, a sweater and my Converse and pulling my hair up. I put on a minimal amount of makeup, grabbed my phone and coat and left the room. I walked back into the main room to see Natasha talking to a very sleepy-looking Steve.

"Ah! You're ready!" Natasha said as soon as she saw me. She then turned to Steve. "Like I said, I made some breakfast for you and it's on the counter. We'll probably be gone for eight hours at the most." She turned back to me. "Are you ready?"

I smiled and nodded.

"Good." She said, turning to leave. I waved goodbye to Steve and followed Natasha out.

We met Wanda Maximoff downstairs. Introductions were made and our small party of three got into a car. We rode to the huge Macy's in Herald Square and proceeded to spend the next eight hours filling up my closet. We bought so much stuff our driver had to pull up the car in front of the store and help us load up the car. Despite how long the trip was, I really enjoyed hanging out with Natasha (who had assured me to just call her Nat) and Wanda. It took a good 30 minutes once we got back for me to carefully unpack and sort all my new clothes. My favorite purchases were a pair of white high top Converse and a pair of bright blue ankle Converse to add to my black ankle pair, a black and white striped cashmere sweater and a tan winter coat with a soft lining and furry cuffs around the wrists and neck. Once all my clothes were sorted and put away, I plopped down on the bed with a loud sigh.

"Wow. This room is a disaster."

I gave Steve an indifferent look from my bed.

"Just saying! I take it your trip was successful?"

I held up and thumbs up and Steve laughed. "Huh, they tired you out today, didn't they? Do you wanna come get something to eat?"

In response, I pulled myself up and got off my bed. I followed Steve into the kitchen where we ate some lasagna. After getting some food, a felt a bit better, but still really tired. Steve recommended I go to bed early, to which I nodded and turned to go into my room.

Throughout the next month and a half, I found out things like how competitive Clint is at Mario Kart (really effing competitive), how much Thor knows about modern technology (actually nothing), and how long I could binge watch a show without stopping (17 hours non-stop is a lot). I met Vision and Bruce and I hung out with the team a lot and went on lots of outings with Nat and Wanda. I also grew particularly close to Steve, trusting him more and more and enjoying his company more and more. I began to loosen up around him and all the other Avengers more, and I noticed that for the first time in years, I had friends.

Additionally, Steve, Clint, Nat and a small group of Level 7 agents were spending as much time as they could looking into me and why Hydra wanted me. Despite all the work they were putting into it, there hadn't been any breakthroughs. We still had no clue why I was wanted by Hydra.

October left and November came and Nat talked me into working out with her, three days a week. It was hard at first, but once I got used to it, I really began to love working out and would go down to the gym nearly every morning. I was really enjoying myself and my new life at the Avengers Tower.

Before I knew it, November was coming to a close and December was sneaking in. It was getting much colder outside and a festive energy was beginning to take hold of New York City, especially with news of the annual Stark Industries Christmas Party. It was an event where women wore elegant ball gowns and men full tuxedos, and the richest billionaires and business men and women came from all over the country. The event only tended to have 150-200 people, and paparazzi were kept outside. All twenty-something women dreamed of going, and I was no exception.

Except for this year that dream was becoming a reality. I was called up to Pepper's office one day in late November and given the fanciest, most elegant invitation I had ever received. Nat came to see me later and told me she had already booked an appointment at her favorite boutique to have our dresses made.

When the day of our appointment came, I was so excited I could scarcely stand still long enough for them to get my measurements. I had decided on a strapless sky blue gown with the bodice decorated with silvery accents and a beautiful satin skirt. Natasha then took me to another boutique that specialized in shoes and helped me pick out an amazing pair of silver heels that were so comfortable I could probably dance all night in them.

In all the preparations for the ball, I had almost forgotten about the reason I was even here in the first place. That is, until Steve brought it up at dinner.

"We had a bit of a breakthrough today." He said. I cocked my head, and he continued. "It's a bit of a small breakthrough, but we think that there's a Hydra facility in Houston. If we can get an exact location on it, we may be able to infiltrate it and find a higher up who would know something about you."

I set down my fork. "I really don't know if that's good news or bad news."

Steve frowned. "I suppose it is a bit of both."

I nod, and just like that, the conversation is over.

The day of the ball approaches, and I go to Clint and Nat's floor to get ready. Nat and I help each other get dressed, apply our makeup, do each other's hair and make sure we're all ready to go. I then present Nat to Clint, who's jaw drops and is dumbfounded by how amazing she looks. He grabs her to kiss her, and I turn away, chuckling softly.

Nat and Clint make an amazing picture, Nat in her flowing red and black gown and Clint in a black suit and a red dress shirt. Clint offers me his arm, and we go downstairs to the waiting limo.

The ride to the venue takes about ten minutes. Once we are there, security checks our invitations and allows us in and we go to our assigned seats for the formal sit-down dinner. I'm at a table with Nat, Clint, an elderly couple who tell me about how they've been attending these balls since the first one Howard Stark ever hosted and a young billionaire who's staring was really starting to bother me. I turn and mention it to Nat, who in turn tells Clint. Clint stares at the guy every time he looks at me, and eventually, the guy stops.

The dinner takes about an hour and a half. Once it finishes, waiters come to take up our dishes and the band begins to play. The guy from the table heads my way, but Clint gives him a glare that could peel paint and he slinks off. Clint winks at me and I smile as he leads Natasha to the dance floor. The old couple gets up to dance, leaving me alone.

I decide to try the bar. Even though I don't drink, Nat told me the bartenders Tony hired can make a mean mocktail. I head that way, but I'm so preoccupied with my own thoughts that I slam right into someone.

"I'm so sorry!" I exclaim as the man turns around. Except for it isn't just anyone.

It's Steve.

"Stephanie?" I can see the shock written all over his face.

"I'm so sorry Steve, I just wasn't looking where I was going and I didn't mean…" Steve holds up a hand, quieting me, and smiles.

"No, it's quite okay, I just…" His voice dwindles off as he gazes up and down my body, taking in my form. I take this as an advantage to look at him. Someone, probably Nat, must have encouraged his dress for the night, because he wears a black tux, a sky blue shirt that _just happens_ to match my dress and a silver and black tie.

Just as his starring begins to feel slightly uncomfortable, he shakes his head.

"I am so sorry, Stephanie. I'm being a jerk. Do you want to dance?"

"Sure." Steve grins and takes my hand, escorting me to the dance floor. Throughout the dance I am extremely aware of his hand tracing patterns on my back and slowly drawing me closer. I look up at his face and feel a feeling like nothing I have ever felt before.

 _Kiss him!_

 _No, what if he doesn't return your feelings?_

 _Clearly he returns your feelings! Didn't you see the lust when he first saw you here?_

 _Yeah, still…_

And so my thoughts continue all through the night, yet Steve seems to always be there, touching me in some sort of way, whether that's caressing my arm, playing with my hair or massaging my shoulders. As we had gotten closer with our friendship, he began to touch me more and more, but now he seems emboldened.

I do have a great night. I have some exceptional mocktails and I meet some women who are a lot like Pepper, all very nice and generous, but also quite business orientated, and any time a playboy swooped down on me, Steve Possessive Rogers was there, giving the man a warning glare before we would go dance to a few songs. All in all, it was pretty great, but I couldn't ignore the possessiveness and lust coming from Steve that intensified through the night.

By three in the morning, there were only a handful of people still there. Clint took a look out the window and, upon seeing our limo, called to Nat, Sam, Steve and I. I grabbed Steve's hand and pulled him out into the cold December night and into our limo. Clint helped Nat in first, then hopped in himself. I giggled a bit as I climbed in, tugging Steve in after me. Sam chuckled softly as he climbed in last, shutting the door behind him. I settled down in the seat, nustling my head in the crook of Steve's neck.

It didn't take long for our limo to reach the Avengers Tower and pull into the underground garage. Sam hopped out first, followed by Steve, who offered a hand to help me out. Clint and Nat stumbled out last, and our small party of five headed to the elevator.

The elevator reached mine and Steve's floor first. I grabbed his hand and pulled him out. I turned and waved to Nat, Clint and Sam. They each waved back, and I turned down the hall and opened the door. I stepped inside and immediately headed to the kitchen to get a drink of water. I heard Steve close the door behind him as I grabbed a glass from the cupboard and filled it up with some water. I drained the glass quickly and went back out into the living room, where my eyes were immediately drawn to Steve.

I could see the desire in his expression as he came over to me. He placed his hands on my bare arms, raising goosebumps on contact. I stared up into those beautiful blue eyes and gulped.

"Kiss me." I stared up at Steve, overcome by the intense desire to kiss him, to taste him.

His eyes glazed over, but I barely noticed as he leaned down to kiss me, and as his lips touched mine, the entire world vanished.

His hands find my waist, pulling me closer to him. One hand travels up my back, traveling into my hair. He pulls the pins out of my hair and runs his hand through my messy curls. Gosh, his lips are so soft and tender as he just kisses me like nothing else matters. His tongue runs across my teeth, and I open my mouth, allowing our tongues to make contact. He groans against my mouth, and it is honestly the most beautiful sound I have ever heard.

His fingers dig in tight to my back, and the thought crosses my mind that I'll probably have bruises in the morning, but it is quickly gone. It's my turn to groan, and it only causes him to hold me tighter, crushing my lips against his and mimicking my mewls of delight.

When we finally separated for air, we don't dare go further than allowing our noses to touch. Our breath mingles in the small space between our mouths, and I find myself drawn to the little beautiful things, like how amazing the rising and falling of Steve's chest is. He takes an arm and pulls me into his chest, nuzzling his face in my hair.

"You don't realize how long I've wanted to do that, Stephanie," he murmurs into my hair. My name sounds sacred, like a prayer on his lips, and I just want to kiss him again.

"You are so beautiful, so amazing, so strong. When I first saw you, I just wanted to protect you, but now I can tell, you can hold your own out pretty dang well." I look up to his face, and his features reflect so much adoration, I feel a lump rising in my throat. I want to say something, to convince him I return his feelings, _and then more,_ but all my words seem to have left me.

Fortunately, they say actions speak louder than words, and I bring my lips to meet his once again.

 **A/N: Oooooh, what do you think? I loved writing this chapter, and I can't wait for y'all to see this relationship further. Eeeeee!**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: So sorry that this is a day late, cause I wanted to try to upload on Fridays. But here's the chapter! I hope y'all enjoy!**

 **Chapter 5:**

The next morning, as I open my eyes, I am greeted with a slightly different view from normal. It takes me a moment to remember where I am until a large arm grabbed me and pulled me into a muscular chest. I smile up and the beautiful blond in bed next to me.

"Good morning." He says, placing a small kiss on my forehead.

I bury my face in his chest. "I wish we could just stay in bed all day like this." I muttered.

He laughs, the deep, throaty, delightful laugh that I love the sound of.

"Believe me, I do too, but aren't you hungry?"

I open my mouth to answer, but I am interrupted by my stomach growling. Steve laughs again, and I pretend to pout.

"Come on, let's go get some food." Steve yanks the blanket off both of us in one fluid motion, and I grapple for it to cover myself again, but Steve is too quick for me.

"Come on Steph, you're hungry, go ahead and get out of bed."

I mutter something along the lines of "just so I can punch you" and clamber out of bed. Steve immediately comes behind me and wraps me in a hug, which somehow manages to make getting out of bed worth it. I do manage to land a punch on Steve's arm after he releases me, which probably actually hurt me more than it hurt him.

After we finish breakfast, his tone turns serious. "I didn't really have the chance to tell you, but we've pinpointed the Hydra base and we're planning to fly out to Texas and raid it."

I run a hand through my hair nervously. "Who's the we in this situation?"

"Nat, Clint, Tony, Sam, Wanda and myself." Steve replies.

"That many?" I ask, cursing the fear that's seeping into my voice. Steve must have picked up on it, for he pulls me in, slightly crushing me against his chest.

"It's just a precaution, Steph. We're so close to finding out what it is about you that Hydra was so keen to get. We've done dozens of these raids before, it's nothing more dangerous than all the other ones."

I gaze up at him and smile. "Then go out there and knock 'em dead." I told him. He grinned back to me and turned to get ready.

Steve and the rest of the team were gone for the next three days. I tried my best not to worry too much, and it was actually easier than I would have expected. I spend a lot of my time with Jane, Darcy and Pepper, binge-watch Netflix shows and did a good deal of reading. The days pass quickly, and late Wednesday afternoon, three days after they left, I got a text from Steve letting me know they were on their way back now.

After said text, it became a lot harder to suppress my anxiety, so I do the one thing I know used to always make me feel better.

Bake cookies.

Something about the method and set structure of baking really helped to calm my nerves, so I busy myself with making my favorite chocolate chip cookies while I wait for the team to get home. When I do hear the quinjet outside, I head over to the landing pad to meet the team.

They all look a bit worse for wear. Clint has a bit of a limp, Nat has a gash down her arm, Tony's suit is banged up and one of Sam's wings is broken. I smile to see them all, but there's one person I'm looking for. He follows Wanda out of the quinjet and, upon seeing me, immediately comes over for the chance to swoop me up in a hug. I hear someone, probably one of the guys, whistle, but I just ignore it as I kiss Steve with the passion of three days without him.

I fiddle with the hem of my shirt as I walk to the interrogation chamber with Steve. Despite the fact that Steve has assured me I have nothing to worry about, I'm still incredibly scared for what he'll say. But I try not to focus on that and instead on Steve's hand, wrapped around mine, providing silent support.

Natasha's already there when we get down, as well as a level 7 agent who I've seen once before but really have no clue who he is. The agent carefully opens the door for us, and I follow Steve and Natasha inside.

The man inside doesn't seem particularly sinister. He has thick, dark hair and a dark beard. There's a long scratch down the side of his face, and his features are contorted into and expression of disgust.

Natasha stands in front of him and begins to grill him, trying her best to get the info out of him. He closes his eyes and seems to be ignoring her until he opens his eyes again and looks past Natasha to… me.

He sneered at the shocked expression on my face. "I've come to the conclusion there's no real harm in telling you about this little freak." He laughed mirthlessly and spat on the ground before continuing. "When her parents found out she was likely to die before she was even born, they were willing to do anything to get that child to live, including signing up for questionable experiments. The fools thought that we were truly trying to save their child, but the poor, poor idiots just didn't know what they had signed up for. Hydra scientists had developed a formula that they thought would recreate the super soldier experiment. The only problem was that that thought it would only work if the formula was injected in a mother who was carrying a child. But where would we get someone willing to test? Your poor, idiotic parents, of course."

"And it could have all worked. We would have taken the child and tested it once it was old enough and most likely have had ourselves a young super soldier we could mold and shape however we so desired. But alas, your dumb father managed to overhear a conversation between two of the doctors and escaped with your mother and her unborn child. They never showed up at our facilities again, yet two months later they gave birth to a happy, healthy baby girl."

He glared in my direction. "We could have still taken you, but your parents promptly uprooted and disappeared. It took us over twenty years to finally track them down, and we couldn't very well have them still around, so that's why we had to dispose of them. We then just had to track you down, which we did. However, your star-studded boyfriend beat us to you, not to mention, because of your worthless father, your mother never got the final serum. The doctors think that if they ever get their hands on you, which they will, they could insert the formula directly and it would still work. And we will find you, and when we do, not even your pristine super soldier boyfriend will be able to save you. Hail Hydra."

I hadn't noticed how tightly I had been clenching Steve's hand, or how dizzy I felt. I felt like I was about to faint, and the only thing actually keeping me up was Steve. He helped me out of the interrogation chamber and up into our rooms. There, we sat together on the couch in silence. I could tell Steve really wanted to say something, anything to make me feel better, but what could he possibly say?

Instead of speaking, Steve just opted to pull me into a hug. I buried my face in his chest and took a shaky breath. Steve's arms pull me tighter and he presses a light kiss to my head. A small sob manages to escape, and Steve pulled me away to look me in the eyes.

"Listen, I don't care about what he said. You're here, you're fine and you're safe. I swear to you, I will do everything I can to keep you safe. It would kill me to see anything happen to you, and I couldn't bear it if anything did happen. I would put my life on the line to see you safe because…" his voice got softer as his blue eyes bore into me. "I think I love you."

I can't stop the tears now, and they flow down my face freely. "I…" I choked on a sob, burying my face in Steve's chest. "I don't want to lose you."


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

I was extremely on edge for the next few weeks, even with Christmas and New Year's coming and going. I just tried my best not to think too much about what the Hydra man had said. I mostly stayed in mine and Steve's rooms, but I did venture out to be with some of the rest of the team. Steve did his best to keep me happy and keep my mind off of everything going on, and I did slowly begin to feel better.

But when Nat approached me and told me that it was time I went outside and did something normal, I reluctantly agreed to go get coffee with her. Unfortunately, I had a sinking feeling that something was going to go terribly, terribly wrong.

Sometimes, I really hate it when I'm right.

The day started ordinarily enough, with me waking up, getting dressed in a cashmere sweater over one of Steve's t-shirts. I went downstairs and met up with Nat in the lobby. We walked down through the streets to a cute shop called Bibble and Sip. I got a hot chocolate and a massive blueberry muffin and went to sit at a table with Nat. The whole time we sat, my leg didn't stop moving, and Nat kept giving me sympathetic looks. But I had to admit, it did feel a bit nice to be out and about, even if I was suspicious of everyone in the shop other than Nat.

We had mostly finished up and left the shop, cradling our still warm drinks. We had been walking for a few minutes when Nat stopped.

"I left my phone in the shop," Nat said, giving me a sorry look. "Listen, it'll be quicker for me just to run back on my own. It shouldn't take me more than five minutes. You should be fine alone."

I opened my mouth to protest, then clamped it shut. Nat was really swift and I would just slow her down, and I honestly wanted to hurry up and get home. So I nodded and Nat turned to go back the way we came.

It had barely been two minutes when I began to get a sinking feeling that something was off. I sent a quick text to Nat that I had continued on my way home and headed the direction we had come on our way to the cafe.

I headed down the surprisingly empty street and tugged at my hair. I couldn't shake the feeling that something bad was about to happen, and I just wanted to get home. But a moment later, I was yanked into a dark alley and a cloth was placed over my nose and mouth. I faintly remember being thrown in the back of a truck before everything went black.

Nat would see my text and continue on her way after retrieving her phone, but she would stumble across a spilled cup of hot chocolate from Bibble and Sip. And she would return to the tower and I would not be there. The team would panic, Steve particularly so. They would do their best to find me, but by the time they did, I wouldn't be the same Stephanie as before.

When I finally came to, I was definitely not in a place I recognized. I was lying down, face up. The surface under me was hard, and I was high up enough to guess I was on a table. I tried to move myself to a sitting position, but my arms, legs and torso were strapped to the table. I could just barely lift up my neck to take in the dim, dingy room, and really just couldn't move. I put my head down on the table and tried to think. My head was still spinning, and my thoughts refused to click together.

Suddenly, the door opened and a man, dressed in a white coat with a surgeon's mask around his neck, came in. He was followed by two similarly dressed men, one of whom was wheeling a cart. They walked over to me. I could just about tell from what I could see that I was in the center of the room I was in. Once he was next to my table, the man began to speak.

"This'll be easiest for all of us if you just don't move and cooperate." He said as he pulled a pair of gloves out of his pocket and pulled them on. The man rolled up the sleeve of my shirt and took a pad, damp with alcohol, and cleaned the area right underneath my shoulder. The man with the cart handed the other man a syringe with some kind of blue liquid in it. I squeezed my eyes shut, but absolutely nothing could have prepared me for what came next.

The pain from the shot faded quickly, but what soon replaced with another kind of pain. One that burned. It began in my shoulder, but rapidly spread through my body. I began to thrash under my restraints as the pain just intensified. I vaguely registered the three men leave the room before everything went black.

I woke up in another room which resembled a jail cell. I was lying on a cot-like bed, and the only other things I could see were a toilet, sink, table and door. The only light came from a small bulb dangling from the ceiling. I rubbed my throbbing head and tried to sit up. Bad move. Almost immediately, all of my organs seemed to fold in on themselves and I curled into a ball to try and decrease the pain.

All of the next few days were spent like that, albeit I had no way to know how long it had actually been. Every so often, someone would come in with a tray of food. Often, they would come in, see the almost uneaten food on the table, switch the trays and leave.

I began to wonder if I was just here because Hydra had failed with me. I knew the story of Captain America. He came out ripped and almost immediately went out to chase the Hydra agent who had killed Doctor Erskine. I couldn't even sit up without wanting to die because of the magnitude of the pain I felt. Plus, as a result of the pain, I felt weaker rather than stronger.

Yet, I felt my strength returning one particular morning when I was able to sit up without any form of pain. I tried to stand and my head swam, but it was a step in the right direction. I also began eating more of my food, but I still never ate all of it. The pain was always there, often a faint throbbing headache, but occasionally in cramps, soreness or a burning pain. But I wasn't dead yet.

The scientists started coming in a little while later. They just did little things, like cutting me to see how fast I healed or had me stand up and walk, or took my temperature, blood pressure, heartbeat and other things like that. The cuts were the worst because despite how fast some of them healed, they still always stung, adding to the seemingly permanent pain.

But the pain wasn't the worst part. The worst part was the dark thoughts that would enter my mind as I tried to sleep. At first, they weren't bad, but the longer I was there, the worse they got. I began to wonder if Steve and the rest of the team even cared, if they were even going to try to rescue me, if I was even worth it. And these thoughts were dangerous because what had kept me going at the beginning was now dragging me down further. I didn't know how much longer I could last this out.

 **A/N: Whelp, what's gonna happen now? Lol, I really appreciate y'all for reading.**


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